


All I Need In This Life

by goddess_julie



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/F, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Genderswap, girl!Niall, girl!Zayn, girl!direction
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-27
Updated: 2014-11-27
Packaged: 2018-02-27 04:16:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,393
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2678768
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/goddess_julie/pseuds/goddess_julie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Zayn's pretending to be Niall's girlfriend.  But she doesn't want to be pretending.  And maybe neither is Niall.</p>
            </blockquote>





	All I Need In This Life

**Author's Note:**

> Day 26 of NaNoWriMo. Genderswap fluff. Not betaed. Just a quick one shot that I barely even thought about as I wrote. Love these two, especially girl Ziall.

It's not that she asked for things to change. If she's honest with herself, she doesn't even really want things to be different, but they've gone too far now to back out. She just hopes that in the midst of it all, she doesn't lose her best friend. She was fine with how things were. She could pine from afar and Niall didn't have to know anything. Technically, Niall still doesn't know anything, but every single day that she's pretending, is another opportunity for Niall to figure it out.

For everyone to figure it out.

"Zee," Niall calls from the kitchen. "Can you please come and taste this. I think it's too much heat but I'm the worst to tell."

Zayn grins and tries to school the fond and look of utter adoration from her face. She heads into the kitchen and sighs. "You know I'm even worse because where everything is too spicy for you, it's never spicy enough for me."

"I just want it to be perfect. This has to be.."

"Perfect," Zayn finishes. "I know. Don't worry. I won't embarrass you."

Niall's face falls, her lips curling downwards into a frown. "Is that what you think? That I'm worried you'll embarrass me?"

Her attempt at a nonchalant shrug is off the mark. Instead, she comes off insecure which of course she is. Zayn reaches into the refrigerator and pulls out a bottle of water and downs half of it once she's swallowed the curry Niall is cooking.

"Are you going for firey pits of hell hot? Because if so, well done." Zayn gets a grin in response. Niall's face has lit up and her smile is beaming. The blonde hair which she has pulled back into a pony tail swings with each nod of her head.

"Perfect."

"You hate spicy food."

"But you love it." Niall pushes past Zayn to grab a few things from the fridge. She sets them on the counter and goes back to her simmering sauce. 

It's then that Zayn realizes that Niall is cooking. Dinner. She is confused since they're meant to go out for dinner with Niall's ex-girlfriend and her new girlfriend. Niall and Demi have remained friends despite the break up and despite the fact that Niall is still in love with her. She hadn't wanted to seem pathetic when Demi had suggested that she and her girlfriend double date with Niall and hers, so she'd begged Zayn to pretend to be her girlfriend.

Zayn had been confused as to why Demi thought Niall was dating someone since she hadn't even gone ON a date since they broke up. It was then that Niall thought Demi had been bluffing when she'd told her that she'd started seeing someone new. 

"So I told her I had too," Niall had confessed with an awkward laugh.

That had been over a month earlier. They've gone on two double dates previously and whenever they ran into Demi when they were out in public, Niall used that opportunity to continue the charade and act as though she and Zayn were in love.

At least she was half right. Zayn had been in love with Niall for longer than she could remember. Since before she'd started dating Demi and throughout their entire year long relationship. What Zayn should have done when Niall suggested it was tell her to find someone else, but of course she didn't. Couldn't. Zayn couldn't deny the blonde anything.

"Why are you cooking?" Zayn asks. She sees Niall blush. Her cheeks are pink and Niall won't meet Zayn's gaze. "Ni?"

Niall sighs and turns to face Zayn. She pulls the rice off of the stove and flicks the dial for the simmering curry off.

"We're not going on a date tonight," she confesses sadly. 

Zayn tries to keep the disappointment off of her face. She also tries to hide the relief. In honesty, Zayn doesn't know how to feel right now. Instead, she stays quiet and waits for Niall to continue.

"Can I be honest with you?"

Zayn nods. "I'd appreciate it if you were."

"In the entire time Demi and I dated, we were mostly just friends with benefits. We weren't in love. It was just us hanging out and shagging whenever we were horny. I mean, i like her but I didn't feel more than that for her. And I'm pretty sure she felt the same way."

"I thought you were in love."

Niall smiles as she shakes her head. She plates their dinner and hands Zayn her plate before she leads her into the dining room to the table. There, Zayn finds a romantic table setting for two. There are candles which Niall lights when she's put her plate down, music playing softly and flowers in the centre of the table. 

Zayn feels her pulse race wildly and her stomach flutter nervously.

"No. I don't think I was. And if I was, it wasn't with Demi." They sit down and Zayn can see how nervous Niall is. "You know, I've been happier in the past month and a bit pretend dating you than I was real dating Demi. And that made me think, maybe I wasn't pretending."

She doesn't know what to say. Zayn holds her breath as though she's waiting for the dream to end. Or that she's somehow misunderstood Niall's intent. Her jaw drops and she sees Niall chuckle softly.

"I don't want to pretend date you, Zee. I want to for real date you. And if the girls are right, they think that you might want to date me for real too."

All Zayn can do is nod her head and take a gasping breath. 

"Apparently, when we were fake dating for Demi, everyone thought we were real dating."

She doesn't want Niall to be the only one risking her heart here. Zayn wants to be brave for the blonde, she knows how much it's taking Niall to tell her this and in the face of getting everything she's wanted, she has to speak up. "I'm in love with you."

Zayn honestly thought she would have more of a lead up to her confession. Her mouth apparently was a little quicker than her brain. Looking up, Zayn sees the shock in Niall's blue eyes and the perfect O that her pink lips form.

"You...what?"

"In love. With you. I've been in love with you for ages, since before you and Demi got together." Zayn can't stop talking. She sees the way Niall's face lights up and she knows she's done the right thing. 'God, I'm so bad at pretending and I thought you could tell. That everyone could."

"Well you were right about everyone. I just thought you were being an awesome friend."

"I kind of hate her, you know?" Zayn admits with a shrug. "I know it's not her fault, but I do."

"Don't hate her. She's afraid of you. Always told me she kept waiting for you to swoop in and steal me from her."

"Would it have worked?" Zayn is honestly curious. She gasps when Niall nods her head confidently.

"In an instant. All you had to do was ask."

"So instead of a double date we..."

"I kind of tricked you into a real date. Our first."

Shyly, Zayn ducks her head and starts to eat the dinner that Niall made. For her. For their first date. She's never tasted anything more delicious in her life. She tells Niall this who leans over to kiss her with an enthusiasm that she does everything in her life with. It is chaste, they don't even part their lips but it's perfect. Zayn can't wait for a million more of them.

Niall's phone vibrates midway through their meal and she picks it up. When she reads the message she bursts into laughter and holds her p;hone out for Zayn to see. It's a message from Demi and she's about to growl until she actually reads the message.

"Did you finally get your girl? Congrats. It's about time the two of you found each other properly."

She doesn't even pretend that she's not blushing.

Niall grins and grabs Zayn's hand to squeeze affectionately.

"You know I love you too right? Like, am madly in love with you?"

"Yeah?"

Niall nods. "Always have been, I think."

"Sick."

"Agreed."


End file.
